Multidrawer container



Oct; 27, 1942. s. STONE MULTIDRAWER CONTAINER 5 Sheets-sheaf 2 Filed. Aug. 28, 1940 I I I 144111 llllllllllllll lllll INVENTQR. 50L, Sm/vE KMVM A 77' OR/VEYS c 4 s. STONE MULTIDRAWER CONTAINER Filed Aug. 28, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 A a P "a u muumfig INVENIOR. 504 570m? 6M+W A TTOR/VEYS Oct. 27, 1942.

S. STONE MULTIDRAWER CONTAINER 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Aug. 28, 1940 INVENTOR.

@M rm A TORNEYS .504 STONE Patented Oct. 27, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT v OFFICE MULTIDRAWER CONTAINER Sol Stone, Brooklyn, N. Y.

Application August 28, 1940, Serial No. 354,475

3 Claims.

This invention relates to multi-drawer containers and has particular reference 'to a container of said character constructed of inexpensive lightweight material and adapted to serve as .a chiffonier or chest of drawers for the storage of clothing or other articles, and which is provided with means for mounting the drawers for guided sliding movement and for supporting the same so as to relieve the side walls of the container of the weight of the drawers.

The invention .is directed to a multi-drawer container composed of interfitting body and end sections which are collapsible to a flat compact arrangement and which includes a rigid drawer receiving frame interfitted between the end sections and opposite Walls of the body section and rigid drawer supporting and guiding frames located within the body in interfitting relation with the end sections for mounting the drawers for guided sliding movement and for supporting the same so as to relieve the side walls of the body of the weight of the drawers and contents thereof.

The invention further embodies in a container of the indicated character, collapsible drawers,

each fashioned from a sheet of corrugated cardboard, paperboard or the like to form the bottom wall and double ply marginal walls thereof, and each having a rigid frame secured to the front wallthereof defining a marginal extension adapted to engage with the drawer receiving frame for limiting the inward closing movement of the drawers.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, reference is now made to the fOHOWil'lg specification and accompanying drawings in which there is illustrated the preferred embodiment thereof.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front view of a multi-drawer container constructed in accordance with the inventionand illustrating one of the drawers removed therefrom.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view therethrough taken approximately on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an-enlarged fragmentary vertical secticnal view taken approximately on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view taken ap- Fig. 6 is a fragmentary collective perspective view illustrating an end section and one of the drawer supporting and guiding frames in separated juxtaposition.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken approximately on the line l''l of Fig. 4.

Referring to the drawings by characters of ref erence, the container comprises a box structure adapted to be stood on one end to dispose the same in upright'position and which includes a rear wall l0, oppositely disposed side walls II and I2, inwardly directed oppositely disposed front wall portions l3 and M, and upper and lower end walls l5 and IS.

The rear wall It, the side walls H and I2 and the inwardly directed front wall portions I3 and M are preferably fashioned from a length of corrugated cardboard, paperboard or other inexpensive equivalent sheet material which is bent on vertical lines to provide a hingedly connected intermediate section A adapted to be collapsed into flatly folded .compactarrangement for storage or shipment. The upper and lower end walls l5 and I6 are each preferably fashioned from a length of similar inexpensive sheet material and have inwardly directed marginal flanges l1 and I8 which are .reenforced by rigid peripheral frames I9 and 20 .of wood or otherstiif material secured against the outer faces of the said flanges respectively to provide similar upper and lower end sections B and C which telescopically fit over the opposite ends of the intermediate section A.

The inwardly directed front wall portions I3 and I4 of the intermediate section A and the inwardly directed front portions 2| and 22 of the flanges I1 and I8 of the end sections B and C provide a vertically extending front opening in which is mounted a rigid rectangular drawer receiving frame D constructed of wood or other stiff material and which frame includes oppositely disposed vertical side stiles 23 and '24 and oppositely disposed transversely extending top and bottom rails 25 and 26 rigidly secured to the side rails adjacent the opposite ends thereof. The inner edges of the inwardly directed front portions 2| and 22 of the flanges ll and I8 abut against the upper and lower faces of the top and bottom rails 25 and. 20 respectively, with the reduced terminals 21 and 28 of the side stiles 23 and 24 extending beyond the rails 25 and 26 and abutting against the underfaces of the top and bottom walls 15 and 16.

The drawer receiving frame D is provided with a plurality of cross strips 29 secured at their opposite ends to the vertical side stiles 23 and 24 and which strips have their upper and lower forward corners longitudinally rabbeted as at to provide a forwardly disposed web portion 3| and upwardly and downwardly projecting flanges 32 and 33 at the rear of the web. The vertical side stiles 23 and 24 and the top and bottom rails 25 and 25 have their inner longitudinally extending faces rabbeted as at 34 and 35 respectively, to provide with the rabbeted upper and lower faces of the cross strips 29 rectangular recessed frame openings for the reception of the drawers E. The vertical side stiles 23 and 24 have their outer faces provided with longitudinally extending grooves 35 and 31 for receiving therein the free inner edges of the inwardly directed front wall portions l3 and [4 of the body section A.

In order to provide means for supporting and guiding the drawers so as to relieve the intermediate section A of the container from the weight of the same and the contents thereof, a pair of supporting and guiding frames, indicated generally by the reference character F, are employed, one being located on each side of the intermediate section and which frames each includes a pair of rigid front and rear vertical members 45 and 4| of a length to extend between the end walls l5 and I5 of the container and which are spaced apart to engage against the inner faces of the side stiles 23 and 24 respectively, and the inner face of the rear wall l0. Each frame also includes a plurality of cross members or bars 42 secured at their opposite ends to the inner faces of the vertical members and 4| and which cross members or bars 42 are spaced apart so that their upper edges 43 are disposed in alignment with the upper faces of the upper flanges 32 of the cross strips 29 of the drawer receiving frame D. Each of the drawer supporting and guiding frames F is provided with a vertically extending panel 44 of inexpensive lightweight material similar to the intermediate section A, and which is secured to the outer faces of the cross strips 42 between the confronting faces of the vertical members 40 and 4| respectively and serve to prevent canting of the drawers. The end walls l5 and 6 are each provided with a pair of cleats 45 secured against the inner face thereof and which are disposed in alignment with the supporting and guiding frames F and have their opposite ends notched as at 46 to receive the ends of the front and rear vertical members 40 and 4| for securing the said frames in vertical position between the end walls of the container.

The drawers of the container are each preferably fashioned from a sheet of light-weight corrugated cardboard, paperboard or other inexpensive equivalent sheet material which sheet is scored and bent to provide a rectangular panel defining the bottom wall 50 of the drawer and hingedly connected oppositely disposed extensions 5| and 52 at the sides thereof and oppositely disposed hinged extensions 53 and 54 at the front and rear thereof. The extensions 5| and 52 are doubled upon themselves to provide flaps 55 and 56, while the extensions 53 and 54 are doubled upon themselves to provide flaps 51 and 58: which flaps are adapted to be folded inwardly to provide double ply marginal walls of the drawer. The extensions 5| and 52 are also provided at the opposite side edges with integral wings 59 which are designed to be nested between the front and rear extensions 53 and 54 and their inturned flaps BI and 58. The front extension 53 has secured thereto a rigid rectangular frame 60, the outer marginal edge portion of which extends slightly beyond the edges of the front wall for a purpose to be hereinafter set forth.

In setting up the drawers, the flap 58 of the extension 54 is folded inwardly over the rear wings 59 of the extensions5| and 52 and into parallel elation with the extension 54 so that the wings lie therebetween and provide a double ply rear wall. The flaps 55 and 55 of the extensions 5| and 52 are then folded inwardly into parallel relation with the extensions 5| and 52 and with their rear edges impinging against the rear flap 5B for locking the same in folded condition, and thus providing double ply side walls. The flap 5! of the front extension is then folded inwardly into parallel relation therewith with the wings 59 disposed therebetween to provide a double ply front wall with its opposite side edges impinging against the flaps 55 and 56 to lock the same in a folded condition. The front flap is removably secured in place by pull handles 6| having threaded shanks 62 extending rearwardly through the double ply front wall and with a retaining nut 63 threaded onto the shank 52.

The upper and lower end sections B and C may be detachably secured to the intermediate section A in any desired manner, but as herein illustrated said means consists of a plurality of metallic U-shaped clips 65 which are disposed within the end wall flanges and secured thereto by rivets 66. The opposite legs of each clip are provided with aligned openings 61 for receiving therethrough the shank of a thumb-tack 68 which is forced through the-side Walls of the intermediate section after the same is positioned within the clip and the shank anchored in the peripheral reenforcing frames of the marginal flanges of the end walls.

What is claimed is:

1. In a container of the class described, the combination of a collapsible box structure having a longitudinally extending front opening, a rigid rectangular frame removably mounted in said opening and having cross strips providing drawer receiving openings, oppositely disposed rigid drawer supporting and guiding frames located within the box structure and including vertical members and cross members secured to the inner faces of the vertical members and extending rearwardly from the cross strips of the rectangular frame adjacent the opposite sides thereof, and socket means carried by the upper and lower walls of the box structure adapted to detachably receive the opposite ends of the said vertical members for removably securing the frames in position and said drawer supporting and guiding frames being adapted for slidably receiving the drawers of the container and for supporting the same with the weight thereof transmitted to the bottom wall of the box structure to thereby relieve the side walls of the weight of said drawers, and said drawer supporting and guiding frames also including longitudinally extending webs disposed between the vertical members and secured to the cross members thereof for preventing canting of the drawers.

2. In a container of the class described, the combination of a collapsible box structure including front, rear, side, top and bottom walls, said front wal1 being provided with a longitudinally extending opening, a rigid rectangular frame having recessed marginal edges in the opposite sides thereof for receiving therein the opposite longitudinal edges defining the opening in the front wall for removably mounting th frame in said opening and said frame having cross strips providing drawer receiving openings, oppositely disposed rigid drawer supporting and guiding frames located within the box structure, one on each side of the drawer receiving openings, and spaced from the side Walls Of the box structure, said frames each including rigid front and rear vertical members of a length to extend between the top and bottom walls of the box structure and respectively disposed adjacent the front and rear walls thereof, and vertically spaced cross members connected at their opposite ends to the inner faces of the front and rear members to respectively dispose their upper edges in alignment with the lower edges of the drawer receiving openings and adapted for slidably receiving the drawers of the container, and cleats secured to the inner faces of the top and bottom walls of the box structure and having notched opposite ends for detachably receiving the ends of the front and rear vertical members for removably securing the frames in upright relation between the end walls of the box structure and in unsecured relation with the vertical walls thereof for supporting drawers in said drawer receiving openings with the weight thereof carried by said front and rear vertical members and transmitted to the bottom wall of the container to thereby relieve the vertical walls thereof of the weight of said drawers.

3. In a container of the class described, the combination of a collapsible box structure including front, rear, side, top and bottom walls,

3 said front wall being provided with a longitudinally extending opening, a rigid rectangular frame removably mounted in and framing said front wall opening, said frame having cross strips providing drawer receiving openings, oppositely disposed rigid drawer supporting and guiding frames located within the box structur one on each side of the drawer receiving openings, said frames each including rigid front and rear vertical members of a length to extend between the top and bottom walls of th box structure and respectively disposed adjacent the front and rear walls thereof, and vertically spaced cross members connected at their opposite ends to the inner faces of the front and rear members respectively to dispose their upper edges in alignment with the lower edges of the drawer receiving openings and adapted for slidably receiving the drawers of the container, and cleats secured to the inner faces of the top and bottom walls of the box structure and having notched opposite ends for detachably receiving the ends of the front and rear vertical members for removably securing the frames in upright relation between the end walls of the box structure and in unsecured relation with the vertical walls thereof for supporting drawers in said drawer receiving openings with the weight thereof carried by said front and rear vertical members and transmitted to the bottom wall of the container to thereby relieve the vertical walls thereof of the weight of said drawers.

SOL STONE. 

